Officers must do whatever is necessary to maintain public order, claims Junius Ho

Police should have used tear gas and if necessary shot protesters during the Mong Kok riot, says outspoken lawyer and district councillor Junius Ho Kwan-yiu.

Speaking on RTHK’s televised City Forum debate on the incident, Ho said law enforcement officers were “too restrained” when faced with street mobs.

“Police used shotguns [during the 1967 riot] … To maintain public order and for self-protection, [police officers] have to take any necessary actions” Ho said.

When asked by another participant of the debate, Oscar Lai Man-lok of student group Scholarism, whether Ho believed police would have been justified in killing city residents, Ho replied: “It would not be killing Hongkongers. It would be killing rioters.”

Ho, a controversial figure, also said it was necessary to implement Article 23 anti-subversion laws in the city.

The overnight clashes in Mong Kok led to more than 100 casualties, five of them media personnel, being taken to hospital.

A journalist from Chinese language newspaper Ming Pao, surnamed Tang, claimed he was attacked by officers despite complying with their orders and showing his press card.

On Friday, Police Commissioner Stephen Lo Wai-chung said in a letter the case was listed as a “complaint” and was being handled by the Complaints Against Police Office. But he made no mention of a criminal investigation.

Lo was responding to an open letter by the Ming Pao Staff Association demanding a criminal investigation into why the journalist was assaulted.

During the clashes in Mong Kok, a number of journalists were attacked by protesters unhappy about being filmed.

On Sunday an article entitled “Our fists will treat you the same way your lenses treat us” went viral on social media, demanding journalists protect the identity of members of the public while reporting.

“Journalists do not have a right to publish photos. Therefore they should not film anything that could affect the daily lives of non-public figures,” it said.

Sixty-five people have so far been arrested in relation to the incident, one of the worst outbreaks of public disorder since rioting in the 1960s.

Since Thursday, 40 people have been charged with rioting while another person is accused of unlawful assembly.

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About chankaiyee2

Author of the book "Tiananmen's Tremendous Achievements" about how with the help of Tiananmen Protests, talented scholars with moral integrity seized power in the Party and state and brought prosperity to China.
The second edition of the book will be published within a few days to mark the 25th anniversary of Tiananmen Protests
All the parts in the first edition remain in the second edition with a few changes due to information available later and better understanding. There are also some changes for improvements of style.
The new parts are Chapters 12-19 on events in China after the first edition was published: The fierce power struggle for succession between reformists and conservatives; Xi Jinping winning all elders’ support during his mysterious disappearance for 2 weeks in early September, 2012; and Xi Jinping Cyclone.
Chan Kai Yee's new book:
SPACE ERA STRATEGY: The Way China Beats The US
An eye-opening book that tells the truth how the US is losing to China.
The US is losing as it adopts the outdated strategy of Air-Sea Battle while China adopts the space era strategy to pursue integrated space and air capabilities:
It is losing due to its diplomacy that has given rise to Russian-Chinese alliance.
US outdated strategy has enabled China to catch up and surpass the US in key weapons:
Hypersonic weapons (HGV) that Pentagon regards as the weapon that will dominate the world in the future.
Aerospaceplane in China’s development of space-air bomber that can engage enemy anywhere in the world within an hour and destroy an entire aircraft carrier battle group within minutes.
Anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons, anti-ASAT weapons, stealth aircrafts, drones, AEW&C, etc. The book gives detailed descriptions of China’s weapon development based on information mainly from Chinese sources that the author monitors closely.
U.S. Must Not Be Beaten by China!
China is not a democracy. Its political system cannot prevent the emergence of a despotic leader or stop such a leader when he begins to bring disasters to people. A few decades ago, Mao Zedong, the worst tyrant in world history did emerge and bring disasters to Chinese people. He wanted to fight a nuclear war to replace capitalism with communism but could not bring nuclear holocaust to world people as China was too weak and poor at that time.
If a despot like Mao Zedong emerges when China has surpassed the US in military strength, world people will suffer the misery experienced by Chinese people in Mao era.
China surpassing the US in GDP is not something to worry about as China has the heavy burden to satisfy its huge population, but China surpassing the US in military strength will be world people’s greatest concern if China remains an autocracy.
US people are of much better quality than Chinese people. What they lack is a wise leader to adopt the correct strategy and diplomacy and the creative ways to use its resources in developing its military capabilities. I hope that with the emergence of a great leader, the US can put an end to its decline and remain number one in the world.
China, US, space era strategy, air-sea battle, space-air bomber, arms race, weapon development, chan kai yee